I’m really stunned after playing this game, it’s hard to believe that it was made by a somewhat indie development studio (Asobo).

The last time I finished something and felt this emotionally exhausted was when I watched Apocalypse Now for the first time. This game really captures the brutality and despair of the middle ages in a way that more fantasy-oriented games do not.

Of course, this game does have some fantasy elements, but for the most part it takes you on a journey with two children who have to make their way through a ruthless and uncaring world, constantly having their childhood ripped away and their faith in adults and humanity shattered.

At the same time, this game is absolutely beautiful. I would put the visuals up against any game, period. You feel like you’re there in medieval France.

I need to go play some happy Mario games after this one.

If you are an adult who handles depressing and dark things okay, and you have even a passing interest in the middle ages, I can’t recommend this game enough (play the first one first though–Plague Tale Innocence). The core gameplay is a stealth game, but whether or not you like that style, the game is worth it and transcends the genre IMO.

  • ISOmorph@feddit.deEnglish
    5·
    1 year ago

    I agree with everything you said. I’m a middle-aged man that’s pretty hard to frazzle. That god damn game gutted me emotionally. I played it on release and I still can literally ‘‘feel’’ the ending. Absolute masterpiece of story-telling.

  • sharpiemarker@feddit.deEnglish
    3·
    1 year ago

    Thank you for your review and for your last paragraph, especially! Like everyone, I tend to fluctuate between enjoying the cathartic feeling of validating your experiences/emotions and avoiding depressing media altogether. You’ve provided a helpful barometer. I’ll definitely put this one the list to play in future.

  • Pumpki@toast.oooEnglish
    3·
    1 year ago

    I just played through Plague tale: Innocence. Game is like a never ending trauma dump, with an incredible amount of fucked up shit. Loved it. Sounds like the sequel is good too

  • vicho@feddit.clEnglish
    2·
    1 year ago

    Has it been a year already? I haven’t played this game, but I played Innocence and I didn’t like it that much. The start is incredible in graphical and atmosphere terms, but by the middle of the game, the core gameplay gets tedious. For a stealth+puzzles game, the stealth and puzzles could’ve used more depth.

  • sevan@lemmy.worldEnglish
    2·
    1 year ago

    Great game, my only reservation is how sharply the difficulty ramped up at the end. I don’t enjoy difficult games anymore, I just play story mode as much as possible. I did finish it, but I almost quit at the end.

  • dan@lemm.eeEnglish
    2·
    1 year ago

    It’s on my list. I loved Innocence, though I thought it started slow it did a great job with atmosphere. Glad to hear Requiem is good too - I look forward to giving it a go.

  • inodeEnglish
    1·
    1 year ago

    I liked it but found some parts a bit confusing for what was going on(I did finish the game). The game play was fun though, a nice mix of puzzle, floor is lava, and stealth. Since it was my first plague tale game, I went and picked up innocence from gog.